Fire
by Koalable
Summary: What would happen if Sakura had to share a burden that Naruto has always had? Rated T-M with some lemons.
1. Chapter 1

**FIRE**

****Please enjoy, relax, and review!

Let me know what you think :)

I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

_Thinking_

**Kyuubi**

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CHAPTER 1: DATE

She could hear him call for her. She knew he was chasing after her, too.

"Sakura-Chan!" the calls became louder.

She wasn't even mad at him. In fact, she felt stupid running because she wasn't running to any particular destination. Although there were tears that rolled down her cheeks, they were invisible through the pouring rain. She couldn't help but feel embarrassed as she rushed through the night time crowd—luckily no familiar faces. Her pink locks stuck to her face, and her clothes were drenched. She continued to run; she lifted her forearm to wipe off the rain and tears—finally stopping her pathetic attempt to escape. She stood there shocked and frustrated when she felt that sharp-throbbing pain in her stomach. She awkwardly limped to a near-by bench.

Anger made her tremble. Her fists tightened on her lap. The anger frustrated her more.

As if on cue, the pain she was experiencing subsided as the blond caught up to her.

"Sa-Sakura-Chan…?" He hovered over her, shielding her from the cold rain with the umbrella, not that it helped at this point.

She sat there, staring blankly ahead of her. The rain made her feel all-the-more stupid for making Naruto chase after her like this.

"What's wrong?" The blond crouched down to her eye level. His darkened blue eyes looked for those emerald eyes he loved so much, feeling rejected when she turned her face away.

She couldn't look him in the eyes after she ran off the way she did. She felt too much shame and guilt, acting like a child and running off when something scared her—a total hypocrite. _"We're not kids anymore," _She used to tell him.

Naruto brought his right hand to her face, gently turning her face to his attention.

_Something's not right… what happened, Sakura-chan?_ He thought to himself.

"I saw the blood—"

"If I tell you, you probably wouldn't believe me." She cut him off shaking her head at the thought.

"Sakura-Chan…" He was becoming frustrated with her.

Wasn't she supposed to trust him?

Wasn't she supposed to have any faith in him at all?

He became concerned—concerned as to why she had run away from him the way she did, and he was concerned because she was throwing up blood for only God knows why.

"Don't you trust me?" he asked with pain in his voice.

Sakura felt guilty. Of course she trusted him.

"Naruto…" she looked down; her hair covering her eyes."You were only a child…" It sounded like a question rather than a statement.

His eyes widened, "what are you talking about?"

Silence.

*****FLASH BACK 45 MINUTES ago*****

She was in his bathroom getting ready for their first "official" date, doing the little things to let him know she cares... Ashamed to tell him about _this_… _was this even normal?_...

The pain was sharp and it burned…it made her nauseous, but nothing came out. Her period wasn't due until next week, and they have always used protection…_except that night._ Her eyes widened for a moment, she felt panic by the "what if" thoughts. She dropped her brush. It was loud enough for Naruto to notice.

"Are you okay, Sakura-chan?" He sounded more anxious for their date than concerned.

If she told him about the stomach pains, he'd worry. When Naruto worries, especially when they're about to go on…what he called "the date of a lifetime", the ambiance will be ruined—and Sakura would never do that to him.

"Sakura-chaaaan", he was definitely becoming impatient.

"I'll be right out!" she heard an impatient 'sigh'.

_No way, It can't be, _She shook her head. _I'm a medical ninja, I'd know…and besides, Naruto and me?... Parents? _She laughed at the silly thought and self-diagnosed the pains as simply "bad cramps". She took some pain medicine and walked out of the bathroom.

Finally ready, her eyes met with his. He was all ready to go on their date. She blushed a little, seeing he was wearing a black long sleeve shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He also wore his orange pants; Sakura liked them. They were his color (obviously). She was wearing her usual attire. She does not like to over doing things, and she preferred to keep things more simple. Of course, she put on some mascara, some perfume, and her knew lip-gloss, but other than that, she was not into dramatic change.

Naruto liked the way she looked; he appreciated that his Sakura-chan wasn't the type to overdo herself. His usual nervousness was kicking in.

"Sa-Sakura..Chan, you—you look really…really… sex—pretty ehehe" He lit up his famous toothy grin.

Sakura raised an eyebrow as her lips wore a smirk.

"I'm glad I can look sex pretty for you," She moved her torso close to his and held his hands.

The blonde leaned his lips to hers, he could smell the mouth watering aroma which made her more tempting. He met her soft lips with his, she tasted like cherries—he wanted to taste more, so he invited his tongue inside her mouth. She accepted and their tongues started to dance with each other's. His left hand softly went up her shirt, touching her slender stomach and up onto her breast. He loved touching her breasts. Although they were not huge, they were enough to occupy his hands.

Her body's innocence is what turned him on so much. He knew he was the only one who could touch her, and the only one that has. She was his property and he was hers. Their mouths parted so they could catch their breaths.

"Oh Naruto-_kun_, I'm having fun with you…but" she said seductively.

Naruto loved it when Sakura used 'kun' after his name. She rarely used it, which is why he loved it so much.

"But what?" he replied coolly.

"But shouldn't we go now?" she said normally, she smiled, knowing the mood was ruined.

Turn off.

"Hehe, yeah I guess we should…" They opened the door to leave when they noticed the rain.

"It's okay, I'll get the umbrella!" Naruto went to his room to look for it.

As Sakura waited by the door, the pain in her stomach returned. It was definitely a little more intense than before.

"gah!" she collapsed on her knees with one hand on her stomach and the other over her mouth—she was throwing up blood. Her eyes widened in horror. The pain was bearable, but she felt as if fire was inside her—it did burn like fire. She also heard screams and she even saw it all… like memories, but not hers…

_Naruto?_

"Sakura-Chan!" Naruto yelled as he ran to help her up.

"What happened?" his eyes narrowed, looking around to see if a possible intruder was around.

Her eyes blankly stared. He shook her, "Sakura-Chan!"

_Shit._

He noticed the blood leaking from her hand that glued to her mouth.

_Damnit,what happened?_ He thought as he went to pick her up.

_I got to take her to Tsunade baa chan…_

Sakura flinched from his touch. Her eyes widened in shock and fear. The physical pain vanished, but these 'visions' with the Kyuubi's involvement made no sense. In all of her time being Tsunade's apprentice, she has never heard of something like this. She blinked her eyes and looked at Naruto's caring blue ones.

"I…" She didn't quite know what to say.

"Sakura-Chan…" his voice sounded helpless, but the lack of reply made him desperate and maybe even terrified

Silence.

"I'm taking you to Tsunade baa-chan," He held her hands to reassure her that he can help, that something wasn't right. Her eyes left his and narrowed slightly. She stood up and her feet moved back a little. She felt as if she couldn't—shouldn't speak.

"I…I can't," she pushed Naruto's hands away from hers and sprinted away into the rainy night.

***END of FLASHBACK***

"Sakura-chan?" It pained him that she wouldn't tell him anything.

Why did she run away from him?

Was it a mistake to be with him?

More importantly… why was she bleeding?

"I understand if—" she cut him off.

"I saw the way you suffered as a child… I saw you as the Kyuubi." She knew she would sound crazy. This is not really something she could put into words. "I was the Kyuubi… but not… I saw myself running to myself… I… I think I was seeing what you've seen that day at the Tenchi Bridge… when… the nine-tails…" She was lost for words.

* * *

NOTE:

I've currently re-written this story.

I've also decided to stick to this story until the end.

Motivation has returned.

Please post a review to let me know what you think!

-Koalable


	2. Chapter 2

**FIRE**

_**WARNING: Slight lemon**_

Don't forget to write a review!

Relax, enjoy, and let me know what cha' think :)

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CHAPTER 2: Intimacy

"I saw the way you suffered as a child… I saw you as the Kyuubi." She knew she would sound crazy. This is not really something she could put into words. "I was the Kyuubi… but not… I saw myself running to myself… I… I think I was seeing what you've seen that day at the Tenchi Bridge… when… the nine-tails…" She was lost for words.

_What did I do to her?_, he thought. His hair covered his eyes. The night felt eerie.

"We need to see Tsunade baa-chan… I don't know what I did to you… but I know this is my fault. We need to find out what's going on because whatever it is, it's hurting you."

She slightly laughed at his idea. "I've been her apprentice for 5 years... There has never been a case like this."

"Then maybe you two can figure this out together with my help." He reached his hand out to hers. She smiled slightly, not willing to decline the help. They walked to the hospital together in silence.

_The pain is getting more frequent…_she thought wincing at the fire. "So much for this date of a life time…" she said quietly, inaudible for Naruto to hear.

"Lady Tsunade!" Naruto yelled as he barged into her office.

"Can't you even knock?" She asked carelessly as she was looking through papers. She sighed and took a gulp of her sake. She looked up from her paper work to Naruto and… _Sakura?_

"What are you two even doing here?" She asked bluntly. "There aren't any missions that need either of you at the moment." She put her elbows on the table and put her hands under her chin. "Well? It better be important."

"We were getting ready for a date.. Then we forgot an umbrella, so then I went back to—" Naruto was cut off.

"Just tell me what's wrong." Tsunade rolled her eyes and looked at her apprentice.

"I've been feeling this fire burning pain…" Sakura continued to talk about the issue. She felt insecure telling her story aloud. It only took a few minutes to tell Tsunade what happened.

"…so I've been seeing things that I think Naruto has seen as the nine tails" she finished.

Sakura looked at her master, who looked at Naruto.

"Did you have sex with my apprentice?" she spat out with venom. You could tell everyone was uncomfortable, especially Naruto. He blushed at the question. He looked annoyed, and narrowed his eyes at the Hokage.

"I don't see how that's any of your business." He answered defensively. Tsunade looked at Sakura, who nodded 'yes' to the question.

"We need to tell her everything if we're ever going to figure this out," Sakura blushed out of embarrassment. She wasn't the type who wanted people to know about her sex life.

Tsunade sighed and looked at Sakura.

"Sakura, can you please give Shizune this paperwork to finish? It's important, but this predicament is even more important," She put either index finger on either temples and rubbed them in circular motion as Sakura took the papers and left the room. When the door closed from Sakura's departure, Tsunade continued,

"I see." Tsunade looked at Naruto. His eyes show regret, while Tsunade's shows fear. "What were you even thinking?!" She drank some more of her sake.

"Are you saying Sakura-Chan is pregnant?"

"If only that was the case." She yelled. "She's in danger, Naruto. She can die." She shook her head.

Naruto's eyes widened for a moment, he stood there with his head fell low, guilty. His eyes darkened, he hated himself at that moment. Through his whole life knowing her, he vowed to protect her, to do whatever made her happy. It even took him a few weeks to forgive himself for hurting her at the Tenchi Bridge. Even the thought of it made his heart sink.

He felt angry; there was never a straight up answer when it came to the stupid nine tails. _How did this happen... How could this have happened? I thought the nine tails can only affect my body, it's obviously affecting her… but I don't understand why._

Tsunade sighed. She regretted her choice of words, "Naruto, no one would've known… This isn't something anyone would've foreseen."

Silence.

As if on cue, Sakura opened the door.

"Don't you people know how to knock?!" Tsunade spat out.

A sweat drop fell from Naruto and Sakura's brow.

"Sorry, Tsunade-shinshou!" Sakura bowed her head,

"Oh, Sakura…" Tsunade laughed, "I thought you were… never mind, this paperwork gave me one hell of a week."

"It's okay Tsunade-shinshou…and I don't want you to worry, Naruto..." Her eyes were full of sadness, "Whatever is wrong with me, I'll do whatever I have to do to fix it." Her face grew determined.

Naruto smiled. His eyes lightened up. He felt responsible, but he wasn't going to help anyone while being depressed about it.

"I'll do anything to help you Sakura-Chan...I don't care what it takes. I will help her through this. I promised you that I will do anything to make you safe and happy, and I will do just that." Sakura was his fire after all.

Tsunade thought for a moment. She looked at the blond.

"Naruto, if you want to help the situation, you need to be honest about something. If it is what I think…" She sighed and took another sip of her sake,"…I need you to verify something."

Knowing people's sexual life is not exactly Tsunade's favorite thing to know. She thought of Jiraiya…_ I guess he's starting to rub off on me even if he is dead. _She blushed slightly and laughed, and as awkward as this was for her to ask, she continued.

"Was the nine tails chakra involved with your…intimacy?... with Sakura?"

Both Naruto and Sakura blushed. "What?!"

"Tsunade baa-chan! A-aren't you being a-a-a little too per-personal?" Naruto spat out.

"Listen you brat, don't flatter yourself. To be frank, I don't really want to know what my apprentice is doing in your bed."

The two looked at each other. Sakura was still blushing; she looked down with a sweat drop. Naruto laughed nervously, putting his hand behind his head. They both thought about it.

*****FLASH BACK*****

It was late, he opened the door to his apartment and they both walked in. Earlier that day, Naruto finally had the courage to ask Sakura on a real date. God, the things she did to him. He wasn't stupid… he knew she didn't take it as a real date. Although he was disappointed, her company was worth it. He wondered how things would be if he told her his feelings. He fantasized about telling her, about her accepting his feelings, about kissing her, touching her… Naruto craved her body. They were older now, seeing her mature features made Naruto want her even more, to make her his property. He has always had control over the lust he felt for her, but as a man would, he fantasized about her. However, something was stopping him from it all. _How can I tell her if I can't even keep my promises?_ He thought back when Sai figured out his feelings for Sakura. However, that is just it. Naruto never did bring Sasuke back.

"Naruto? Are you even listening?" Sakura sounded annoyed.

"Sorry Sakura-Chan! I was thinking about something" He wore his big goofy grin out of embarrassment.

There was an awkward silence for a second.

"I was saying how things have changed, ever since…you know…" she was facing away from Naruto.

_Since I couldn't keep my promise, right? I still can't bring home the person you've been in love with… yeah, I know, Sakura-chan…_

"I was honestly thinking about the same thing." He walked up to her, he felt nervous; he didn't want to strike a nerve.

He gently put his hand on her shoulder to turn her around, "Sakura-Chan, I made a promise, and I'm trying… Please be patient with me."

Although his voice gave her comfort, she looked down due to her lack of confidence on the topic.

"I know Naruto… but I can't help but regret… I…shouldn't have had you make that stupid promise," she replied.

_Why? Oh, Sakura-chan if any of us were going to hell, it'd be me. It was a promise of a lifetime…One simple thing and I still can't seem to keep it._

Naruto put his hand on her chin and raised her head up so she can look into his eyes.

"Don't regret—"She cut him off,

"To this day I feel ashamed about how I felt about Sasuke. How I thought I loved him. How I made you make that stupid promise."

She narrowed her eyes, "It's a fact, Naruto… when Sasuke left, my love for him left… maybe not quickly, but it eventually did… I knew how you felt about me…"

Naruto's eyes widened, and Sakura continued as she blushed slightly.

"I was afraid of losing you. When my feelings for Sasuke left, I realized that my feelings were for you-"Her eyes widened in shock. She gasped, realizing what she was saying. She bit her lip.

Naruto's heart fluttered at her confession. He craved to ease her heart—to make it all better. He wanted to taste her lips, to show her that he isn't going anywhere.

"Sakura-Chan…" He smiled slightly, "I had no idea that…" He stopped for a moment; he wanted to word it right. He wanted to tell her how he felt, but it had to be perfect. "I had no idea that the girl I love… cared so much about me." His heart pounded, hoping her rejection would not feel too hurtful.

"What are you saying?" she looked at him with wide eyes, Naruto looked at hers with intense passion.

"I've loved you for a long time… I want you to be mine, I promise I won't go anywhere, I'll do anything to make you the happiest girl alive." His face became red from his locked up, now un-locked, confession. His nervousness sparked some adrenalin. Sakura was just as red. She moved closer to him, her eyes full of lust.

"Anything?" She asked, moving her face close to his, it teased him. Her lips barely touched his. She wanted permission. Naruto eliminated the void between them and softly kissed her. She tasted like Cherries. His heart fluttered. He wanted her. He could not help but feel guilty—he certainly did not want to take advantage of her, so he stopped.

"Sakura-Chan…" he didn't mean to be a turn off, but he needed to be sure, "I've been having feelings for you… for a long time…" He thought this would have given her a chance to walk away and to realize what she is getting herself into.

She blushed.

"Naruto-_kun_…" she moved her lips to his again, tasting him. Her saying 'Naruto-kun' turned him on and there was no stopping him. He picked her up and they headed to pure ecstasy. He was on top of her, invading her mouth with his tongue. She unzipped his pants, hinting that she wants them off. He obeyed her, he always would.

Would she obey _him_?

He slowly pulled her skirt down, she took them off; _obeying_ his needs, wearing only her panties. She looked mouth watering. She looked beautiful, and she was his for the taking. It made him weak—she made him weak. They were both nervous and neither of them have ever done this before.

"Naruto-kun…" she whispered, "I need you". He would not deny this from her. He slowly pulled her panties off, he has been waiting for this moment for a long time, and he will do this right. He put himself between her, feeling her heat on the tip of his cock.

"Are you sure, Sakura-Chan?" He asked with his last remaining will power, knowing she could come to her senses.

She nodded, bracing herself for the invasion. He kissed her lips tenderly and trailed kisses down her neck.

"You don't know what you're doing to me," he groaned as he slowly went inside her. After that, there was absolutely no restraining him.

"Mine." He collapsed onto her, his red eyes looking at her emerald ones.

_She made him weak_.


	3. Chapter 3

**FIRE**

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CHAPTER 3: Figure this out

_Mine._

Neither of them thought wrong about that night. Sakura was aware of Naruto's eyes, but dismissed it was natural for him—he didn't hurt her. She asked him about it when they woke up. Naruto was worried at first, but he didn't think anything of it either—he didn't hurt her, that's all that mattered. He admitted to himself that he felt different, but wouldn't have noticed the detail Sakura noticed had she not have told him, so they shrugged it off and forgot about it until now.

The epiphany left a bad feeling in the pit of Naruto's stomach. Knowing this was truly his fault made him wince in despair.

He looked at Tsunade, she was waiting for an answer to her question about the kyuubi having any involvement in their 'intimacy'.

He lowered his head in shame; his hair covering his eyes, "Yea...but" he said admittedly, "I don't understand how… or why." He added.

Tsunade looked deep in thought. She had a theory, even if she didn't like it. She looked at Naruto.

_If I'm right, we need to act soon. _She turned her sight to Sakura.

_Sakura is strong… but if this is true—_

"Sakura-Chan!?" Naruto yelled.

Sakura was standing next to Naruto. Her eyes covered by the shadows of her hair, she wore a frustrated frown.

"Sakura?" Both Tsunade and Naruto sensed a different chakra…. different, but familiar.

Tsunade immediately stood up from her desk and cautiously walked to her apprentice. Sakura slowly raised her head, allowing her red demonic eyes to become visible. Naruto stood there speechless. His eyes widened in horror. Tsunade was just as shocked. Her theory was right…

"W-whats…happening…to me…" She struggled to say. The pain was much worse. It wasn't just her stomach anymore… it was her whole body. It felt like something was incinerating her chakra. She couldn't think, her mind was slowly becoming foggy.

"It…hurts… Lady Tsu—" she was able choke out. She collapsed onto the floor. Tsunade didn't waste a moment. She checked her eyes for signs of normality—still red. Green chakra was flowing through her hands on top of Sakura stomach.

"Damn it." She whispered, understanding the situation. She closed her eyes and stood up.

"

"What's happening?" Naruto yelled.

"I can explain it to you, but you won't like it." Tsunade made a few hand signs and put her right hand on Sakura's stomach leaving the body seal visible. She had to seal the invasive chakra in order to restrain it from whatever its objective is—killing her? taking over her body?

_"What are you up to?"_ Tsunade asked in her thoughts.

It took a while, but the seal was a success. Tsunade checked Sakura's eyes, which were their normal color again. She sighed in relief.

"Naruto..." Tsunade was stern; a bead of sweat ran down her face.

"Yeah…" he got out with a raspy voice.

"You do understand what's going on, right?" her eyes narrowed at the seriousness.

It happened so quickly and Naruto could do nothing. His heart throbbed, he did this to her.

"Can you explain to me what I'm not understanding?" He asked, still in shock. The chakra he sensed—he knew whose it was. He didn't want to believe it.

"I'll tell you, but we need to get Sakura into a room, we don't know how long she'll be unconscious for." Naruto nodded in agreement.

Sakura walked around what almost looked like a chamber. It was dark, the floor was wet, and the feeling was unnatural. She walked for a while and found the only opening, which lead to darkness. She slowly walked into it, seeing nothing but a golden gate at the end. When she reached it, her eyes widened. She was confused at the paper looking seal before her that held the gate shut. She only reached out to touch it, nothing more.

**Take off the seal! **It was a deep male voice within the locked gate. She didn't see anything but an abyss of darkness. Sakura didn't reply.

_He sounds strong enough to take it off himself if he really wanted to…_ She thought logically.

**You stupid girl! Do NOT question my strength. If I wanted to, I would have killed you by now. **The voice threatened, it became visible beyond the gate, and its eyes were blistering red, full of hate. It wore an eerie smile, its teeth were sharp, huge, and glistening with saliva. Its body was a fire; Sakura could feel that it was enough heat to kill a person. It made her tremble in fear. Her eyes were still wide and they stayed locked on the beast.

"How did you…" She whispered to it, afraid.

**Oh!... **the voice echoed in excitement. **If you take off this seal, I will explain to you what you do not know.** He gambled to the girl.

"I won't do it unless I know everything." She played her own cards in return. Thanks to being with Tsunade, if one thing is certain, Sakura learned not make rash decisions on a gamble unless she can fix the out coming problem. This method alone has helped her success rate as a medical ninja.

**Stupid girl! **He spat out with venom,** We will just see what they tell you and what they do not. You know where I am if you want real answers. You know what I want. **He wasn't going to waste his time on her. He knows her kind. Human… stubborn.

"Wait! Where am I?" She asked the beast before he left.

**HAHAHA! **He laughed powerfully and viciously. **Stupid human! **He left without giving an answer.

Her eyes shot open to white. She knew this sight all too well. She must have fallen asleep here from doing so much paper work. _That dream_…

"Sakura-Chan…" She heard the familiar voice, he didn't sound happy at all, though. His voice was tired, he must be exhausted.

She tried to sit up, but she couldn't. She felt drained.

"Your chakra level is still low." He told her.

She was confused for a moment. She turned her face towards him.

"Oh…" She remembered what happened in Tsunade's office,

"What's going on?... What happened?" she asked weakly.

Naruto sighed; he put on a smile for her, his eyes were full of guilt.

"There's no easy way to say it, so I'm kind of glad you can't hit me in the state you're in" He chuckled slightly.

Sakura wasn't buying it, "Then I'll make sure I'm well rested. That way, you'll be the first person to hit when I'm better!" She spat out.

"Sakura-Channnn" he whined, "I was joking!"

Sakura was glaring at him. It was worse than kunais.

He took a gulp, shook his head, and then continued,

"Alright, here's what you need to know…" He tried to be careful, he wanted to choose his words right.

"Remember that night?" He whispered, "When we confessed to each other…and…"

Sakura nodded her head,"… But what does that night have anything to do with now?"

Naruto felt awkward. The whole situation was awkward,

"Well… when… you know… remember how my eyes were red when we… _finished_?... we thought it was normal?" He blushed and put his hand behind his head. He had a nervous laugh. His face suddenly became serious,

"Me and Tsunade think… I did this to you…" He continued,

"She has a theory… that the nine tails took advantage of my…" his face turned red again, "… weak state of mind with _you_ and moved some of its chakra into your body."

Sakura froze for a moment. _That dream…_

"Sakura-Chan, I'm so sorry this happened, I promise we will figure this out…"

_Figure this out… _she felt like a test subject. "So there's no doubt about it… there's nine tails chakra inside me?"

"Yes…" He replied. The guilt was unbearable.

She felt mad. "All of the chakra?"

His face developed some relief in it. "No. To be honest, you'd be dead if it was all of it."

"Are you calling me week?!" She threatened.

Typical Sakura. A sweat drop appeared on Naruto's head. He waved his hands in defense.

"No no no! Sa-sa-sakura-chan, you're strong! If it was your monstrous strength against mine, you'd kill me!" It didn't seem to make the situation better and he realized his poor choice of words.

"Sakura-Chan… You know what I meant. You're not a monster!"

"Can the chakra be extracted?" Although Sakura's a skilled medic, maybe Naruto knows more about this?

He hesitated to tell her much until she was better. Naruto sighed and held her hand gently.

"… No." Tsunade cut in,"…But we will be doing research to see if it's possible."

Naruto and Sakura didn't notice her presence.

"The Akatsuki successfully extracted Gaara's Shukaku…" Sakura remembered, "It's possible."

"But look what it did. It killed him," Naruto quickly said. There was no way in hell he'd chance the extraction if Sakura's death was possible.

"He's right, Sakura, we need to experiment… We have no idea. These things aren't in the books." Tsunade wasn't going to put her well being on the line, "

"So I'm an experiment." Sakura's temper wasn't calming down at this point.

"Here is what you need to know right now." Tsunade narrowed her eyes.

"You are not an 'experiment'. As my apprentice, you of all people should know how this kind of thing has no research, notes, or even a possibility for true success."

Sakura closed her eyes for a moment. She took a deep breath. "I understand…" She acknowledged her teacher's feelings about it. She was right…

"Until we figure out how, or if, we can successfully extract the nine tail chakra, Naruto will be with you 24/7. He will teach you how to control the chakra."

There was sympathy in Tsunade's voice, "Until you can fully control the chakra, your duty as a medical ninja are revoked."

Tsunade was disappointed. She knew Sakura was the best medical ninja next to her.

Sakura was heartbroken. Her eyes watered, but she didn't cry. Naruto held her hand tight. Being a medic meant the world to her.

"You don't… trust me?" Sakura managed to get out without crying in the process.

"Sakura… I trust you. I trust Sakura Haruno; the best medic next to me if not better… I can't trust the nine tails with someone who has no control over it… what if you heal a ninja and the nine tails chakra were to interfere? Would you be able to live with that?"

Sakura smiled slightly. "Thank you… Lady Tsunade."

Tsunade smiled in return. "Now get some rest. When you have control, expect a lot of work. I have a lot of faith in you" She sighed and walked out of the room.

_Things are going to be tough around here without her._


	4. Chapter 4

**FIRE**

* * *

CHAPTER 4: Monster

She woke up to a warm glowing sky. Her muscles were weak from the lack of usage. She sat up to stretch her arms when she noticed Naruto walk in with a tray of food.

"Hey Sakura-Chan," He smiled. She remembered Tsunade telling her that Naruto will be by her side until she can control the nine tail's chakra. Sakura wore a smile for him. Things felt awkward. She can't lie to herself… she was mad. Why her? Why did she have to control the chakra that Naruto supposedly mastered to control, which by the way, took him years to do. Not to mention that night was supposed to be special. She gave herself to him with trust and confidence that he would never hurt her… On the other hand, Even Naruto couldn't have predicted this, and Tsunade did say she was going to find a way to extract the chakra… if it is even possible. When Sakura was mad, she was mad. However, she was never one to say mad for long when she thought with reason.

"Good morning… Naruto," She said politely.

Naruto chuckled, "You mean Good evening? You slept all day."

Sakura did a double take on what she thought was an early morning sky.

"Oh…?" She was confused, and then realized that it was a day wasted, she was disappointed.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" she asked with a pout on her face.

Naruto couldn't help but laugh, "You needed to rest!" He was going to wake her up, but the thought of her being grumpy and the thought of her nagging at him for waking him up stopped him from doing so,

"You looked comfortable and really cute." He continued.

She gave him the benefit of the doubt and let it go. A loud random growling noise took the attention; Sakura's face was red from embarrassment.

"I knew you'd be hungry when you woke up, so I brought you breakfast, lunch, and dinner just in case." Naruto sat next to her on the guest chair with the tray on the table full of different hospital dinner food.

"Thank you… Naruto" His gesture made her heart flutter.

"Don't mention it. When you're done, we can leave if you feel up to it." He offered and she gladly accepted it.

Once she ate, she got up to grab the fresh cleaned clothes Naruto left on the bed. He had left the room only to stand in front of the door. Although he has already seen her undressed, he wanted her to know she had the right to have privacy, regardless of the fact he had to keep an eye on her. Sakura pulled her shirt. She grimaced at the smell and took it off. Luckily, she had a room where a shower was included. She took her clothes off and turned the water on.

* * *

Naruto was standing there for about 10 minutes. He heard the shower turn on. He didn't mind waiting. He stood there thinking about everything.

_I mean it, Naruto. You can't let her out of your sight._

_I know…_he sounded annoyed. His eyes not leaving Sakura, she was asleep, unaware of the conversation.

_For God's sake, I hope you do. We have no idea what could happen if something triggers that chakra…We don't know if it can be as deadly as the chakra inside you, or if it can be worse because she doesn't know how to control it._

_She's not a monster. _He argued._ Sheisn't like me, far from it… If you don't have faith in her-_

_Do not accuse me of calling my apprentice a monster. All I'm saying is that you need to watch Sakura and you cannot let her out of your sight. You need to help her train. No one else besides her, you, and I can know about this unless I find it necessary. If anyone questions, you say you two were assigned a classified mission and have to do classified training. That is all they need to know. It will explain Sakura's lack of medical duty, and it will explain why you two are always together._

_Fair enough… _He wasn't trying to argue, as much as he hated it all… he knew Tsunade was right.

_Now that we have an understanding, I'm giving you these. _She handed Naruto paper seals. _You use these when necessary. If you think she cannot control the chakra any longer, you use one of these on her. It should control it for her. Sound familiar?_

Naruto grimaced. He remembered when Jiraiya had to use one on him. _Don't worry Tsunade, Sakura-Chan won't need these… She's strong enough._

Naruto's thoughts ended as Ino interrupted them.

"What are you doing here, Naruto?" She asked nonchalantly.

"I could ask you the same!" He was very defensive.

"I'm doing an overnight shift, baka!" She said offensively.

They both exchanged glares until her eyes saw Sakura's name on the clipboard on the door.

"What happened to billboard brow?" She questioned. Naruto sucked at lying.

"Uh… she… I… Um…" Ino slapped him, "IS SHE PREGNANT?!" she yelled, she took the clipboard and looked at it.

"_….Excess use of chakra during medical duty_."

The loud speaker went on, "Ino Yamanaka, please report to the operating room for immediate assistance. I repeat, Ino Yamanaka, please report to the operating room for immediate assistance." Ino put the clipboard back on the door.

"Oh… I gotta' hurry, but tell your girlfriend to feel better." She ran off, _At least it wasn't anything too serious._

Naruto stood there dumbfounded as he rubbed the red slap mark on his right cheek.

* * *

Sakura was out of the shower, she felt clean, and she was finally awake. She had a white towel wrapped around her head, and another wrapped around her body. She went into her hospital room to change into her clothes. She took the towel off her body and put on her black bra and panties, nothing special. She noticed something dark in the mirror, however. She looked with caution and saw her pale body with a black seal symbol on her stomach. It freaked her out; it was very noticeable. She just stared at it. She was slowing realizing that this _is_ happening. The more she stared, the angrier she got, yet couldn't help but look.

_All I feel is anger…all because of the nine tails…_

**Ahh… so you figured it out.** The voice was entertained.

_I wasn't talking to you! What do you want?!_

**I don't care if you're talking to me, stupid girl… **he instigated.

_Then go away._

**Take off the seal and I will. Otherwise, you'll just be a monster for the rest of your life.**

_Lady Tsunade is going to remove your chakra…_

**HAHAHA! OH, STUPID GIRL! **His voice became louder, more eerily powerful.**You think that's possible… Humans are always so gullible.**

_Lady Tsunade would never lie… Neither would Naruto…_

**Don't make me laugh, it's human nature to lie. It's also human nature to spare another human's pathetic feelings. Don't worry though, your eyes will show that you're just as much as a monster as the demon inside you… **He laughed at the pun he didn't intend to make. Sakura knew the fox was making a sick joke about Naruto being a monster.

Sakura looked in the mirror—looking at her reflection. Her eyes narrowed before her. She whispered to herself—maybe unknowingly to the fox that lives inside the seal.

"I'm not a Monster." Her fist aimed at the pinkette in front of her.

Naruto heard a loud shatter. His heart raced.

"Sakura-Chan!" He ran into the room and saw her.

He blushed seeing her in her bra and panties, but it wasn't the time for the thoughts he wanted to think.

"What happened?" He asked, trying to ignore the way she looked.

"I…" she paused… she seemed distraught. Her voice calmed and her depressed look turned into a 'mom-caught-me-stealing-a-cookie-from-a-cookie-jar ' look.

"I'm clumsy." Her laugh was fake. Naruto could see the seal on her stomach she was attempting to hide with her shirt. Sakura continued,

"I was trying to put my skirt on… and I tripped and hit the mirror with my shoulder." She laughed more. Naruto wasn't stupid… She was holding her shirt, not shirt… he also noticed small red cuts on her knuckles, not her shoulders. It pained him that she hated herself. At least that was the impression she was giving him.

"Get dressed and let's go." He was too mad to say anything.

They left the hospital. By now, the night took over the sky and the stars were its companion. Naruto wanted to talk to her about the nine tails. Not that a silly mirror could hurt his Sakura-Chan, it was the principle of it; she lied about how she broke it, he wasn't a fool. All he wanted was for her to be open about it… He thought she accepted him as a jinjuriki… He wasn't sure how to go about it. He thought walking around would increase interest of a conversation, hopefully it would lead to their situation.

Silence.

She wasn't tired; she just woke up from a whole day of sleep.

She wasn't mad at Naruto, she loved him. She felt like an unfinished puzzled. Confused, unresolved, had so many questions, but didn't know how to go about them. To her relief, Naruto spoke up. They were on a pathway; there was a bench where he led them to sit down.

"Sakura-Chan, what happened with the mirror?" He wanted the truth. Sakura sighed and shrugged,

"I told you it was an accident."

Naruto clenched his fists. "Do you remember when you falsely confessed to me and I told you that I hate people who lie to themselves?" he sounded bitter. Sakura's mouth dropped.

"You promised you wouldn't bring that up again!" she glared at him, "It was an accident, Naruto!"

She pouted as Naruto sat there, a shadow covered his eyes—he didn't reply.

"Naruto?"

"Do you think I'm a monster?" Naruto asked. His expression was gentle and his hands were unclenched.

"Naruto… no… you're not. Why would you ask that?" She asked as if he had no more hope.

Naruto continued, "I know _I'm_ not a monster…" he looked into Sakura's eyes.

"Just because I have the nine tails inside of me, doesn't make me a monster. It makes me stronger because I go through things no one else should."

He smiled, "The difference between me and a monster is that I chose to not listen to what the monster tempts me to do."

**Except that "oh so special night" you two shared together.**

"huh?"

**HAHAHAHA!**

For some reason, Naruto seemed as if his feelings were hurt.

Truth be told, Naruto was fighting with himself in his mind.

"I know you aren't a monster, Naruto." Her face became serious as she continued,

"I thought I was going to be the monster. I don't want to lose control and hurt the people I care about."

Naruto understood, he is constantly in those shoes.

"Sakura-Chan, I can't promise you that you won't hurt the people you care about…" he thought about the time when he hurt Jiraiya, the time when he hurt Sakura… both when he was being controlled by the Kyuubi chakra. He continued,

"If you let the fear of hurting the people you care about take over, you won't have time to improve on it… to learn control, to become stronger…" he grinned.

"I'm not good at talking like this, and I might not be making sense, but you're strong, Sakura-Chan." He held her hand and looked into her eyes.

Sakura was on the brink of tears. She felt selfish. She felt spoiled—she didn't deserve his lecture. She has only been a host for a couple days, Naruto had to deal with it for his whole life.

_I am a monster…_Realizing her actions, she looked down in shame. Naruto tilted her head up with his free hand under her chin.

"If you were a monster you wouldn't care like you do." Their faces were inches away from each other; he slowly moved his lips onto hers and softly kissed her, soon becoming more passionate and rough as if it was their last day on earth—as if he could lose her any minute. He wanted her to know how sorry he was, how much of a bastard he was for making her go through this shit.

_I promise to protect you with my life_, he thought, making each kissing minute more and more passionate. As time went by, they stopped—both catching their breaths.

They got up and headed towards Naruto's apartment. The walk was comfortably quiet besides the late night crowds, how nostalgic for them, but what's done is done and there's no use crying over spilled milk. They held hands the whole time and nothing could break them at this point.

Naruto sat on the couch and Sakura cuddled on top of him. Her head rested on his chest. He liked where she was, her cute butt on his package. He was practically drooling.

"I guess I have to train tomorrow, huh?" Sakura had her eyes shut, surprisingly tired.

"Yea.." he replied with a yawn.

"You better not go easy on me," she demanded.

He raised a brow with a smirk, "Who said I was gonna' go easy on you?"

Sakura tugged playfully on his shirt like a child, he looked down to see her face looking up with her lips puckered. He laughed and gave her a kiss.

"Good because we're not kids anymore." She answered.

Both of them dozed off into a nice and comfortable sleep, their bodies preparing for the exhausting day ahead of them.


	5. Chapter 5

**FIRE**

* * *

CHAPTER 5: Training

She was conscious; at least she thought she was. She couldn't move even if she wanted to. Her eyes were wide open; she could feel them, yet all she saw was black. The pain was surreal. She felt her whole body burn; it was on fire—through her eyes, through her mouth, everywhere. She felt her chakra dangerously lowering and there was no stopping it, at least in her control. She didn't even know where she was, or what time it was… it seemed like days have gone by. She heard small talk every now and then, but the pain was too much to make out who was there or what they were saying. She wanted to die at this point. Whatever was going on, she wanted to die. She thought about her friends, her village, and her family and… Naruto. Where was he? Hopefully safe…

"Sakura-Chan!" she heard a familiar voice scream for her.

For once peace fell through her. The voice vanished for a while. Whoever the voice was, they were most likely busy.

_I'm over here! _She wanted to scream, _I'm right here!_

She heard the sharp metals of kunai clang against each other and As if by magic, the force was gone and Sakura's body fell onto a hard floor. She was confused, beaten, and she was dying.

"SAKURA-CHAN!" His panicked voice was in her all ready ringing ears. She heard the sounds of battle still.

"God will not be happy with you, look what you've all done!" an Akatsuki follower proclaimed.

"Well your God is a crazy lunatic, bastard!" Kiba replied. Sakura could hear others around. Did everyone come to this place to save her?

Naruto ran towards Sakura, behind him was the whole rookie nine.

"Sakura-Chan!" He was finally hovering over her body, his blue eyes were tinted with red.

"Ino, get over here!" He put his ear on Sakura's chest to check for a pulse, it was extremely low, barely readable. Ino arrived on cue.

"Sakura…" her voice was full of piety. She began her work. Although Sakura was the only medic to surpass Tsunade, Ino was still talented and it was very useful when people needed her medical attention.

"Sakura, don't you dare…" Ino sobbed as she ran her green glowing chakra around Sakura's body.

_WHY IS HER BODY REJECTING THE CHAKRA?!,_Ino thought. Tears started to swell up in her eyes.

"Ino…" Sakura whispered, surprisingly Naruto and Ino's eyes were wide; considering the damages, they didn't think she was conscious.

"You…can stop…n-now…It's okay…" Ino was shocked; she wouldn't just let her best friend/rival die… not like this.

"Sakura, I- I swear when we get back to the village…when you get better I will knock you senseless for saying that!" Ino continued,

"Sakura, we came for you… Naruto especially… we came here to save you and to bring you back to Konoha… and that's what we're going to do."

Sakura smiled slightly.

_I don't think they get it_, she thought,_I don't think they understand how severe my condition is…_

"I'm going to die..." she said bluntly. Whether it was true, or if it was because Sakura wanted to because of the pain, it was a statement Naruto wouldn't take so lightly. Naruto grabbed Sakura's shirt and held her up, aware of the agonizing pain she was in, but damn it, he was angry.

"We came here for you Sakura-Chan! We will bring you back to the leaf village alive!" He slammed his fist on the ground.

"Naruto… "Ino whispered, her bangs covered her eyes, a tear fell down her cheek.

"Her body isn't taking in my medical chakra…" they felt defeated. Tears rolled down his face from his red eyes, he was now cloaked with the nine tails

This was all his fault... that Sakura lied there lifeless.

"SAKURA-CHAN!" he screamed. Everyone fighting was exhausted. It was time to retreat.

"SAKURA-CHAN!" Naruto was at his breaking point, he was allowing the nine tails to take over.

"Sakura-Chan…" darkness.

"Sakura-Chan! Wake up!"

* * *

"NARUTO!" Sakura screamed as her eyes opened from what seemed like hell. Her forehead covered in sweat. Her body was trembling. _It was a dream…_ she thought. Still in shock from the nightmare… it felt so real. She sat up on the couch she drifted to sleep in. Naruto's face was full of concern. "Are you okay Sakura-Chan?" he asked. His face was in front of hers.

Sakura was crying.

"Sakura-Chan?"

"It's okay… just a bad dream" she smiled and got up to use the bathroom. "We're training, right?" Naruto nodded.

"Sakura-Chan? I just wanted to remind you that this training isn't going to be the regular sparring and stuff." He reminded her.

"I understand." Was all she said, and at that, they got ready in a comfortable silence.

They arrived to the training ground. It was early morning. Naruto took a deep breath (more like a yawn) he wasn't sure how Sakura would take the training. It would be very emotionally draining, bloody at times, and just frustrating for the both of them. He knew how difficult it is to carry such chakra, but he also had his whole life to train and control it. Sakura, on the other hand…

_Damn it… Stupid fox…_

**_Hah… blame me for your own doing…_**

_My own doing?_

**_Listen brat. You're the one who entrusted my chakra into your mate._**

_Don't bull shit me! You'd do anything to be free from the seal._

**_Yes… but that's impossible unless that seal is broken. Oh how I love being inside a female's body._**

_Then why?..._

**_I did nothing… like I said before, YOU entrusted your mate with some of me… When one mates with another, more than likely he wants to share everything with their mate…_**

_This is sick._

**_Human or animal, they all have instincts._**

_I didn't even ask you… but… is there a way to—_

**_That's not possible… Although I can dimensionally be at multiple places, that becomes permanent, but the chakra potential will be less than my own and will not last forever such as myself… unless destroyed._**

_So there's no choice… Sakura-Chan is stuck with your chakra until we can extract it, or control it…_

Overall, Sakura wasn't the only one who needed to be prepared for the training. Naruto knew some of the things he had in store for her were challenging and even cruel. He talked to Tsunade about it all, they weighed their options down, and the best idea thus far was to pretty much mind fuck her in any way possible to teach her control; to teach her how to make controlling the chakra as second nature. Although no one was to know about Sakura's current problem, people needed to help. With that, Kurenai was a master of genjutsu. She can manipulate anyone including those who have total awareness of being in a genjutsu into thinking it was reality.

"So… what should we do first?" Sakura asked, her eyes narrowed with determination. Naruto couldn't help but feel piety for her._I guess this is it…_ He nodded. As if on cue, a figure took a step into the training ground behind Sakura.

"So the rumors are true?" He asked in amusement. Sakura's eyes widened, her face became pale. She knew that voice all too well. She turned around and flipped a kunai out in defense. Her trembling was noticeable; her hand was shaking while holding the weapon. Naruto kept his cool. "Who would have thought that Sakura Haruno would be with the dobe."

"Sasuke..Kun…?" She stopped trembling; she turned to Naruto who looked offended at the fact she used 'kun' in Sasuke's name.

_Is this a joke?_ She thought… "Naruto… this isn't funny." She made a couple hand signs. "Release."

Nothing.

"Sakura-Chan… This isn't part of the training… can't you sense his chakra?" Naruto asked, hoping Kurenai's genjutsu worked on her. Sakura was stunned. It was really him! At least to her belief.

Sakura turned back to Sasuke and held her kunai up.

"Why are you here?" she spat with venom. He had a smirk on his face, he didn't even seem threatened by her demeanor.

"To kill you."

At that, Sakura threw her Kunai, which only Ricochet from Sasuke's katana as he drew it out from behind.

As if it was nothing.

"Still weak I see." He charged towards Sakura, his sharingan was visible.

Sakura braced herself and before Sasuke had the time to attack; Naruto blocked his katana with a kunai.

"Sakura-Chan, I'll handle this." He grunted at the force of the blade. Sakura's eyes were wide—she was still weak…

_Sasuke was right._She could only think of the times where she thought she could take Sasuke on, yet she needed Naruto to save her. The time when she told Naruto she "loved him" in the land of iron, where she went to face Sasuke herself… she was a joke.

"Not this time" she whispered to herself.

"Naruto, let me handle this." She concentrated her chakra into her fists and charged towards Sasuke. Naruto jumped back knowing the damage that her strength may cause. As Sakura punched the ground, Sasuke jumped back gracefully sliding back from the impact.

"Sakura-Chan! You don't have to do this!" Naruto pleaded, but Sakura was done with it.

Done with it all.

Done being that weak little girl, and done being in the way.

"Naruto… I want to prove that I'm just as strong as you… I want to do this." Sakura ran towards Sasuke again and did the same as before. Sasuke smirked even more.

Naruto stood there, a little impressed. Maybe this "training" will work. He decided to watch.

"You'll always be weak Sakura…" Sasuke was behind her now.

Usually it would cause confusion. He would have ended her life there, too, except Sakura knew better. She spun her body around and kicked him, making him hit a nearby tree, which left a dent. Sakura charged Sasuke, the chakra inside her fists were evident.

_Okay, don't fuck this up…_ she ran with all her might.

Another figure appeared to aid Sasuke; she was unknown. She blocked Sakura's punch and sucked all of the chakra away from it.

"Sasuke-Kun, I'll take care of the other one, hmm?" She had black hair tied in a large thick bun, her eyes were black and her lips were red.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked. She was astonished… no one has ever been able to retract her chakra punches due to their speed and power.

The woman chucked. "Mmm… I'm Kyoei, sweetheart…But I'd be more worried about you."

At that, Sakura and Sasuke were exchanging blows and Naruto and Kyoei were battling it out.

Kyoei ran toward the woods, Naruto followed.

"Uh…Kurenai-Sensei…?" Naruto felt guilty for leaving Sakura.

Kyoei disappeared and Kurenai became visible. "Don't worry Naruto, since it's not the real Sasuke, my genjutsu can't do his full potential." She waved Naruto to watch the fight between Sakura and "Sasuke".

Sakura was dodging a lot of kunai. Sasuke was playing, he didn't take her seriously.

There was a sharp scream of agony. Sasuke's katana had Sakura pinned to a tree. It went right through her body. The pain was almost like the time when Sasori did this.

"Give up, Sakura."

* * *

Naruto was watching from the distance. "Kurenai!-"she cut him off. "Naruto… I may not be a medical ninja, but I know vital points. She'll be fine." Naruto was annoyed. He knew the training would be cruel… _but this? _He wasn't one to just watch a precious person suffer like this, but all he could do was be compliant about it. This was all of his fault, suffering now will only benefit Sakura later… _Damn it._ He gritted his teeth and continued watching.

Sweat dripped down Sakura's face. She panted through the pain she felt through her torso. Sasuke was taunting her.

He could have just ended it. _He wants me to suffer._ Sasuke held up a kunai to her neck.

"Tell me about the nine tails." He demanded. Sakura narrowed her eyes.

_"So the rumors are true?"_she remembered her ex team mate say that.

_How does he know?_

"What the hell are you talking about?" She bluffed, hoping he would give her some answers.

He moved the katana deeper into its new sheath. Blood dripped out of Sakura's mouth; she grunted in pain. Her eyes tinted with red, she felt the fox chakra boil inside her.

"Don't fuck with me." He wasn't stupid. He could see with his own eyes.

"Bastard," was Sakura's only comeback.

Sasuke laughed. "That's what's so ironic." His smile was evil, his eyes carried memories, which he made Sakura watch. The same katana ripped through her mother's heart, her father tried to defend their family, but obviously no match. Sasuke sliced off her father's arms leaving him defenseless. Putting the father out of his misery, he threw a kunai between his eyes, causing instant death—her mother was killed shortly after.

"No…" Red took over her emerald eyes. Her skin was hot, causing the tree to smoke a bit.

He laughed more, "So tell me, Sakura," he dug the katana deeper, "How does it feel to be alone?"

Sakura smirked, tears fell down her eyes in memory of her deceased parents.

"Naruto." She whispered, so lightly that it was almost hard to hear.

"What?" Sasuke turned the katana so the blade would make new wounds. Sakura cried through the pain. "Naruto!" She yelled. The torture stopped.

"I'll tell you a secret." He put his mouth to her ears. "Do you know why Naruto picked you to hold that chakra?" He smiled from ear to ear, "Because the Akatsuki will come after you, buying him time. You see, no one cares for you. You've always been weak, you've always been sacrifice material—an experiment at best."

Sakura closed her eyes. As ridiculous as Sasuke's words sound, it angered her. He was mind fucking her.

It was working.

Sakura was at her boiling point. Her body became cloaked with red chakra, she gritted at the katana's sharp pain as she lifted her legs to kick Sasuke. The chakra's energy was four times stronger than her normal strength, it sent him flying through trees even. She ripped her body with the katana from the tree and forced the katana out of her. Her scream was disturbing and painful. It only brewed out more chakra.

* * *

Naruto's eyes were wide. He gritted his teeth.

_Damn it!_

"Kurenai-Sensei, get out of here, you're in no condition to stay for this." He looked over to her, her belly was getting big; she was due in a couple of months. They'd be damned if anything happened to Asuma's child. She nodded and did a few hand signals to release the genjutsu.

"I will tell the Hokage to be ready at the Hospital," she said.

"Thank you Kurenai-Sensei…" she left with a nod. Naruto ran towards Sakura.

_Shit. This is bad._

He pulled out a small white paper, Tsunade gave them to him… it was to disband the nine tail chakra. Naruto was convinced that Sakura wouldn't need it, but he brought it for precaution.

Sakura stood there with her bangs over her eyes. She was struggling.

_Damn it. I can't… I can't stop… I-_

"Sakura-Chan!" The sun was rising, the training was over for today.

He held the paper seal in front of her.

"Sakura-Chan, stop! It's all bullshit!" he stepped forward. Big mistake. Sakura's red chakra covered fists met Naruto's cheek, causing him to fly back onto the ground. His left cheek burnt, it stung.

"He killed my parents…" Naruto stood up, he ran towards her and she saw him, the chakra was too much for her to control. At this point, she wasn't all there. She threw a couple fast speed kunai, which Naruto avoided. He was just about to throw the paper seal on her, but instead, got kicked in the gut. He winced at the pain. He took notice that the chakra's cloak was slowly going away.

_Was she fighting for her control?_

"Sakura-Chan…" Obviously for the first day of training, this was too far.

"He killed my parents." I guess the realization was finally hitting her.

"No, he didn't… we—"

"I saw it… he showed me their deaths!"

"Sakura-Chan, none of this happened…" He slowly moved a step forward. In the state she's in, Sakura's a walking time bomb unless she get's full control.

"The truth is… it was a genjutsu." He took few steps forward and was in front of her now.

Sakura's were wide in shock; she couldn't help but feel betrayed. Her cloak was gone and her eyes were still red. He could see the wound from the katana and by the looks of it she needs medical attention.

"So it comes to this? Something out of my control… something YOU did, and I have to just take it?" she spat out, Naruto narrowed his eyes.

**It takes two to tango…**

_Shut up. She's right._

"Sakura-Chan… this is my fault…" was his only comeback.

"I'm just an experiment, am I right?" genjutsu or not… Sasuke-kun was obviously right.

Naruto winced at the 'kun'.

Her eyes were tinting back to her natural color, the emerald eyes were coming back. They didn't need the paper seals. They didn't need to argue senselessly either.

Naruto's hair was covering his eyes, her words were insulting.

"You _really_ think I'd use you like this and make you into something like me on purpose!?" He grabbed her shirt. He was angry.

Maybe this training was a bad idea. His words were obviously enough to make Sakura gasp at the reality, but he couldn't stop.

"I don't have regrets except what I've done to you. I thought that the training would have helped you… to make you stronger!" His voice was full of disappointment. "Do you really think I wanted this to happen to you?!"

Sakura stood there. He was right… "But why Sasuke?!"Out of all people, they had to use Sasuke in the training.

Naruto knew what she meant. Sasuke was their ex teammate. Although he fucked up, they still had faith in him... It's obvious, even if it's small, Sakura still has unresolved feelings for Sasuke, and that made Naruto's blood boil.

"There are worse people out there. If you carry some nine tail chakra like me, people will want to find you, kill you, torture you, hunt you down and God knows what else."

All Sakura could do is be silent. He was right. Sasuke was an emotional challenge… if she couldn't beat _him _without chakra control, it would only get worse when (and if) the Akatsuki figured this out. Ultimately, if she doesn't control the nine tail chakra, she could kill her loved ones and even herself, and Naruto wasn't going to allow her to do such a thing. Naruto wouldn't be able to live with himself if anything bad happened. Her vision became blurry.

"I'm sorry…Naruto…" her voice was sincere, she had a lot of thinking to do. He caught her before she hit the ground. She was clearly out of her own chakra. Her wound needed medical treatment due to its severity; it wasn't going to heal on its own.

_Damn it._

A very bitter Naruto carried her to the hospital. Tsunade was waiting.

It seems like both Sakura and Naruto have a lot to think about.


	6. Chapter 6

**FIRE**

****I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

* * *

CHAPTER 6: Theory

_Chakra deprivation and a severe mind fuck._

Mission accomplished… (If you could even call it that)

Tsunade assured Naruto that everything would be fine. Sakura just needs time to rest and recuperate. She stood quietly on the left of the bed, watching her apprentice sleep. Naruto sat in the visitor's chair on Sakura's right.

"You said she was able to control the nine-tail chakra when you tried reasoning with her, am I right?" Tsunade asked, breaking the silence.

"Yea…" he replied.

_"Interesting," _She thought, checking Sakura's eyes one last time to make sure nothing is changing while she was unconscious.

Feeling that things are okay for now, she went to take her leave.

"Right now, Sakura will be fine here. You should go home and rest." She told him.

Naruto was exhausted. Sleeping in his own bed sounded tempting, but the training left him feeling unresolved with Sakura. Besides, he didn't want her feeling abandoned if she were to wake up with him gone.

"My mission is to watch her… I'll stay and rest here." He replied.

Tsunade opened the door in front of her, "very well. Let me know if anything interesting happens."

Within a few seconds, she was gone, the sound of her heels faded away as she walked down the hallway.

_Interesting? what does baa-chan mean by that?_ He thought.

Naruto watched Sakura's chest rise and fall in a soft even pattern; it brought a sense of calmness to him.

_I wish I knew what you were thinking… how I can help you, Sakura-chan…_

He drifted to sleep, hoping the two will resolve everything somehow and some way.

* * *

"Shizune!" She yelled as she poured some sake.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama!?"

"I need my classified notes for..." she lowered her voice, "_Sakura's_ situation."

"Of course! Did you figure something out about the issue?" She asked optimistically as she took the notes from Tsunade's filer and held it. Shizine is Tsunade's right hand Jounin medic. She _is_ to be trusted.

Tsunade's eyes were determined, "I have a theory… but we both know that nothing is fact until proven as such."

Shizune nodded in agreement, "You're absolutely right!" She continued, "However, having a theory is better than nothing at all!"

Tsunade smiled, knowing just how right Shizune was.

"Write this down, Shizune!"

"Right away Tsunade-sama!"

"Although Jinjuriki chakra was never known to be capable of sharing hosts, there is a possibility that the chakra has the two hosts _linked_…"

"Linked?" Shizune questioned.

"Linked," Tsunade took a gulp of her sake and then continued, "kind of like twins… they share almost the same DNA. Whether they're on opposite parts of the world, or in the same home… there has been countless reports of them sharing a sort of "twin telepathy", likes, dislikes, views, morals… It's a strange, yet an interesting phenomenon don't you think?"

"Yes, I certainly agree, but Naruto and Sakura aren't remotely related, how can we compare them to twins?" Shizine questioned, trying to see where Tsunade was going with her theory.

"Chakra. They both share the exact same chakra as of right now… what if Sakura can only control that chakra when Naruto is around… However, these are the only thoughts I have for now. Until this is a proven fact, I have nothing else to work on."

"Tsunade-sama! I think you're really on to something! How should we go about this?"

Tsunade poured more sake into her cup, "Now is just a waiting game."

* * *

Walking in the familiar darkness of his mind, he reached the gate that seals the kyuubi. Naruto looked up allowing the shadows to reveal his eyes. He wanted answers, but he doubted he would get them easily.

**I guess the stupid boy is not as stupid as I thought… but you're still a stupid boy… HAHAHAAAAAA!** The laughter echoed loudly.

_Shut up, fox… I'm not in the mood. You're going to tell me what you're planning and why you created this mess!_

**HAHAHAAAAAHAHAAAA! STUPID BOY. Humans always want something else to blame for their own doing.**

_What do you mean 'My own doing?!"_

**I told you before… While you mated with her, you gave her MY chakra! Without MY permission.**

He stood there with wide eyes, _You're not making any sense!_

**YOU FUCKED HER AND GAVE HER HALF OF MY CHAKRA YOU STUPID BOY! NOW I'M WEAKER… AND THAT DOES ****_NOT_**** MEAN I'M WEAK… I'M STILL STRONGER THAN THE WHOLE SHINOBI WORLD COMBINED… **

How _could_ the fox have done anything? Naruto felt sick. Originally, he thought this was something beyond his control; it was now potentially his own doing.

_Shit…_

**YEAH!… shit.** The fox said sarcastically,** And here is what you're going to do… You ARE going to give me MY chakra back! Being at two places at once is tiresome.**

****Since the fox was at two places at once... maybe the answer was right in front of him the whole time? Naruto blushed at the thought. This is sick. How could he be thinking about something like this, now?

_Would… would… uh… _

How was he going to ask him this? It's not every day we get sex advice from a fox.

**HAHAHA! You think mating will undo what you've done? HAAAAHAHAHAAA!**

The laughter continued and echoed louder. Naruto's face grew red from the embarrassment.

_AT LEAST I'M TRYING YOU STUPID FOX!_

The laughing stopped.

**You stupid humans always look for easy answers… When a male fucks a female, he GIVES to her, if you know what I mean, not take back from what you've already gave her! **

A bead of sweat dropped from Naruto's brow, Okay, maybe this was a stupid idea. Thoughts about Sakura cloaked in nine-tail chakra made him feel guilty. He needed to fix this mess and the answers aren't going to obvious... This is going to take awhile. Thank God she had good control, regardless that she punched Naruto in the face, she was still able to control the new invasive chakra in her body. He admired her for that…

**You really BELIEVE that your mate was STRONG enough to suppress MY chakra? HAAAAHAHAAAAAHAAA!**

Confusion took over Naruto's face. Was he wrong about everything?

**Humans are so fucking stupid! Stupid boy, WE suppressed MY chakra! **

_We?_

**I'm already regretting the fact that I said WE... but yes, however that is the only thing I know. YOU GAVE HER MY CHAKRA, YOU GET IT BACK BEFORE ANYTHING HAPPENS TO IT! **

Determination grew in his eyes. He can't wallow in his own pity anymore. As much as he hated to admit it, the fox is right…

**_BEFORE ANYTHING HAPPENS TO IT!_**

If anyone found out about Sakura, who knows what could happen. All Naruto knew what that something interesting was definitely worth telling Tsunade baa-chan.

Things need to change. Attitudes need to change. One thing was for sure, this _was_ Naruto's fault. Now he needs to fix what he's done no matter what. Although the fox is locked inside, it doesn't make it okay to steal his chakra without consent no matter how unintentional it was... just like the fourth hokage who sealed the fox inside him without consent... just like giving Sakura a burden she didn't deserve without her consent. This whole thing is fucked up.

_Listen fox! I promise you'll get your chakra back. I think I understand… even if it's just a little bit…_

**We will see how much you understand and how well you keep to your pathetic promises.**

At that, Naruto awoke to an already awakened Sakura. She sat there with eyes full of shock, as if she heard his and the fox's whole conversation.

_Did she?_

__Blue and emerald meet each other, as if their eyes were having the conversation.

"Is something wrong, Sakura-chan?"

"I don't know?"

"What did you hear?"

"Everything."

They sat there in silence, wondering what the other was thinking.


End file.
